Thank you all for the lovely sentiments and birthday wishes. I had such a nice birthday! My grandsons made the cutest cards and we laughed and laughed over them. A great dinner followed by a gourmet chocolate cake sent overnight express by a friend, topped with vanilla bean ice cream was so good.

Afterward the boys played on the computers while the rest of us sat in the living room singing old hymns of the faith, accompanied on the guitar and another stringed instrument by Tim and by my niece, Janet. You cannot imagine what it was like to see Tim strumming his guitar and singing with us, "What Can Wash Away My Sins? Nothing But The Blood of Jesus." I waited 20 years to see Tim sing and play like this again, with his eyes closed and worshipping the Lord. It was an hour I'll never forget. What a birthday present! Thank you, precious Jesus.

Andy is not doing well. Depression has hit hard as his doctor told him he can't drive again for 6 months and maybe not ever again. Norma is unable to drive so I don't know what they'll do. Andy will talk to his doctor in Boston to see how soon he can go back home. We're invited them to stay with us all winter if they like but he wants to go home when he can. I guess he'll have to resign his pastorate. Poor guy. Even the meds are hard to get used to, since he said they mess with his brain.

So sleepy. Thanks you again for your sweet wishes.

Mariane Holbrook

"For you are dead to yourself and your life is hid with Christ in God."Colossians 3:3

Mariane, I so sorry to hear about Andy and how all of this is affecting him. A person's life can change so quickly.

Verna, what a nice piece you wrote for Mariane.

Verna and Mariane, have you two ever met in person? I realize just because you live in the same state doesn't mean you live anywhere close to each other, but I still thought I'd ask.

Barb, thanks for understanding. Sometimes the things we need to talk about are heavier than we want to put on the average person. I know you understand. You take care of so many people in so many ways, and it's a lot on your shoulders. Sometimes we want in our lives the person we are to others, I think. I know I'd like a Christian counselor to discuss things with sometimes.

I spent the whole day without my iPad but didn't want to miss this special opportunity to wish dear Mariane, "Happy Birthday!". You will never realize while on earth what an impact you have had on so many. I thank God He brought us together. I hope your birthday was as special as you are, dear friend.

Marty and I had our 45th wedding anniversary today, but decided to postpone our special dinner. The antibiotic he is on has really messed up his taste buds so we decided to wait until he can truly enjoy it. His birthday was Friday so we'll have a double celebration!

Loved your birthday post for Mariane, Verna!

And I can certainly relate to the need for special friends in our lives. I have never lived a more isolated life than in these last twelve years since we moved here, but because of health reasons have been unable to socialize and be involved in our church as in the past where I've generally made those special friendships.

Hey guys, I know I hardly eve pop in here, but I have a HUGE favour to ask! I belong to a group on Facebook called Noahs Arks Rescue. I have chipped in over the last 18 months to help with animal rescue, and this woman does an incredible amount of good. Her organization has a chance at winning $50,000. Please vote! You can only vote once, otherwise I'd be voting every day!

I saw it on Facebook, Cori, so I voted, then forwarded the info to everyone on my mailing list. That kind of organization is dear to my heart and such a ministry to those involved in it. For those of us who can't be directly involved, we can support it with our $$ which I plan to do, also. Thanks, Cori.

Mariane Holbrook

"For you are dead to yourself and your life is hid with Christ in God."Colossians 3:3

Laurie, to answer your question--Mariane and I do not live near each other. She is a good example to me of someone you love whom you've never seen in person. From the first time I came to the porch, I felt her genuine warmth, and we developed a relationship of Christian sisters--sharing on the porch, as well as in private e-mails. She's a true friend who cares, a prayer partner, a sharer of joys. To me she is the crowning jewel of example of Christian womanhood, and we have a wonderful connection--just no real-life hugs.

I'm excited today. My granddaughters (graphic artists) almost have my book ready for publishing. It should be available sometime in October. If you're looking for some poems to encourage you in your faith, to revel in nature, to laugh out loud, or to share my reflections, you can order from Amazon Don't Frighten the Pansies by Verna Cole Mitchell. It will be in print and a little later in Kindle or Nook. I will let you know when it's ready. This has been a long-time dream coming to fruition.

Thank you, my sweet friend Verna, for those kind but undeserved remarks. I couldn't love you more. And I am so excited about your upcoming book I can hardly wait. It will be just what I need to give to friends or relatives for whom I generally have a hard time finding an appropriate gift for Christmas or birthdays.

One question, Verna. We want to help you all we can, so will it help you financially if we order directly from you? If it doesn't help you in that way, would it be better to buy it directly from Amazon? I went through this a couple of times when I used a Raleigh printer to make copies of my 2 books for me. I didn't go to Amazon but just sold them to friends and family til they sold out. I'll never forget when I got the boxes of finished copies. I felt like I had given birth to a baby, so help me! I was so excited! But I should have used a good editor because there were several grammatical errors that now make me gulp. But people are generous and forgiving (except for one cousin who made a list of my errors after I gave her a free copy. LOL) Some were as insignificant as a missing comma, but she was thorough in her search, I'll say that much about her. I should have had her proof-read it before it was printed. Seriously. I have enough material for a third book but don't have the patience, strength or (most of all, the $$).

Time for a little chat with my sister. I'll miss her when she returns home next week. Andy talked to his doctor in Boston and he was pleased with the care he got at the local hospital here and asked Andy to give the bothersome meds a little more time to see if Andy adjusts to them.

I love you guys and gals. Nite nite.

Mariane Holbrook

"For you are dead to yourself and your life is hid with Christ in God."Colossians 3:3

My dear Mariane, you deserve more kind words than I would have the ability to say about you. Our shared love of Christ and like beliefs and similar interests have made our friendship stronger.

It would be more of an advantage to me for folks to buy them from Amazon or Barnes and Noble on-line when they become available. I will get a small royalty from them. I can buy them for a slightly less amount than you can, but then I have to mail them. I'm sure I'll never get back what I'll put into them financially, but it has been a dream for so long, and I'm so thankful for my husband giving me the money to take care of it as an anniversary gift. I appreciate my porch friends sharing in my joy. I, too, have enough for another book or two, but I doubt that will ever happen. The print version will have a picture spread at the end (most likely, black and white) that the Kindle and Nook versions won't have, but they'll definitely be cheaper. I'm so appreciative of the interest already shown.Those of you who have entered FW challenges through the years have probably already read many of the poems already.

Joanney, I'll be praying for your surgery, for wisdom for the doctors and a successful surgery and speedy recovery for you.

I haven't seen Don on the porch lately. I'm hoping he and Carol are alright.

Today, I cancelled the surgery. The poor excuse for an insurance policy that I have would not cover any of the surgery and only $250/day for the hospital stay. The hospital gave me a quote of $15,308 for just the facility. That did not include the surgeon or other costs. When my student loan money comes in, I will use part of it to buy insurance through the school which I can look at the benefits now and know is a better policy for not a lot more $. But then I will need to wait 6 months before they cover a pre-existing condition. During the meantime, the doctor put me on some medicine that will help with some of the symptoms, but not all of them. Basically, it will help with the ones that have made it more urgent since scheduling the surgery.

I am disappointed as I was looking forward to the relief, but I just don't have the money to do it. Can't afford to have surgery, can't afford to not have it.

Needless to say, I did not get very far on my homework today.

"We are not sinners because we sin, we sin because we are sinners."

You have wearied the LORD with your words. “How have we wearied him?” you ask. By saying, “All who do evil are good in the eyes of the LORD, and he is pleased with them” or “Where is the God of justice?” Malachi 2:17

Joanney, how disappointing for you. I'm sorry to hear you'll have to endure this for longer until you can get relief. I hope the medication is effective for what it can do and with no side effects. I'm glad you have the option of getting better insurance even though I realize it still means a delay.